The invention relates to projectile firing weapons.
This invention has particular, but not exclusive, application to large calibre weapons such as cannons, guns and artillery pieces and the like, but it may also be applied to smaller firearms, such as machine guns, self-propelled artillery and the like.
Tests of prototype versions of firearms utilizing barrels of the type illustrated in my earlier International Patent Application No. PCT/AU96/00459 indicate that such barrel assemblies will perform to expectations. Such tests have indicated a surprising effectiveness of the gas seal between rounds which prevents propellant burn past the seal in the next round to be fired. While the initial tests have been limited to small calibre projectiles the inventor considers that similar results would be achieved in large caliber projectiles, although this is yet to be confirmed.
Typically large calibre weapons and fixed machine guns utilise permanently mounted barrel structures which fire projectiles supported in respective disposable cases which must be removed or ejected at each firing.
It is considered that it would be advantageous to increase the presently available rate of firing of such large rounds as it is during the initial moments of bombardment that most damage can be caused. Thus any increase in the rate of firing such rounds increases the number of rounds which can be delivered onto a target during the initial moments of an attack.
Machine guns and particularly those which utilise fixed barrels, such as machine guns mounted in aircraft, have space and weight limitations which limit the number of rounds which can be carried and the rate of firing due to the need to load the round and unload the spent case at each firing.
This invention aims alleviate at least one of the abovementioned disadvantages and/or to provide improved projectile firing weapons.